Visible card index trays



March 6, 1956 D. A. GUNN VISIBLE CARD INDEX IRAYs Filed Feb. l2, 1953 INVENTOR DONALD A. GUN N ATTORNEY at position.

lPatented M3136,

iVV

VISIBLE CARD INDEX TRAYS Donald A. Gunn, Kenmore, N. Y., assignor, by mesne assignments, t Sperry Rand Corporation, New York,

N. Y., a corporation of Delaware `Application February 12, 1953, Serial No. 336,561 2 Claims. (Cl. 129-16) The invention pertains to new and useful improve ments in visible card index trays. It is particularly concerned with an improved bottom stopfor trays of this type.

The visible card index tray of conventional use is an elongated shallow tray in which is contained a series of card holders. A card holder includes at itsy rear a transverse strip to the upper surface of which is attached the rear edge of a llap or pocket adapted to hold a record bearing card. The ends of the strips extend as lugs beyond the sides of the aps and are engagedv in channels in opposite walls of the tray. The cardholders may be removed from the channels by llexing the'strips and lifting the holders out.` The card holders are arranged in the tray so that the rear transverse edge of each strip nests in between the flap and the surface of the strip of the card holder to its rear, and the'flap of one card holder Voverlaps the ap of the cardholder before it so as to leave a narrow transverse marginal edge of the under lying ap exposed at the front on which a suitable notation is adapted to be placed to indicate the contents of the card held by the ap. The channel walls of the tray prevent the card holders from lshifting at the sides; a conventional back stop limits shifting of the card holders rearwardly of the tray. f f

The present inventionrproposes a bottom'stopl for use at the front of the tray, a purpose of which is to prevent shifting or loose movement of the card holders forwardly ofthe tray, and which also serves to hold the card holders in the tray in an orderly arrangement with only the index marginal strips of the aps exposed. f Y

A notable feature 'of the bottom stop of the present invention is found in its particular structure whereby, after it is released to allow'shifting or rearrangement of the card holders, it can be moved back to its stop position in engagement with the bottommost or end card holder while the card holders of the trayfarerin their conventional This advantage eliminates the need 'of manual manipulation and guiding of the card holders into a place of engagement withthe bottom stop.

Another feature of the invention lies in the simplicity of its construction and in the arrangement of its parts.

Anobject of the invention is, therefore, an improved and practical bottom'stop for visible card index trays.

A further object of the invention is a bottom stop that may be employed in visible card index trays, which stop may be released for'shifting'of the card holders and which can be closed when all card holders are lying flat without the need of manually guiding the bottom or end card holder pocket into engagement with the bottom stop.

The invention further lies in the particular arrangement of its various elements and in their cooperative association with one another.

The invention shows an improvement in the type of bottom stop shown in U. S. Patent 2,026,503, patented December 3l, 1935.

The foregoing objects and advantages of the invention, as well as others, will become readily apparent as vthis 2 specification unfolds in greater detail and as it is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings forming a part of this application and wherein a preferred embodi ment of the invention is illustrated.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a plan view of the forward end of a card index tray embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. l showing the normal position of the bottom stop in the tray;

' Fig. 3 is 'a view similar to that of Fig. 2, but showing ythe bottom stop in released position; and

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the bottom stop with portions of the tray cut away.

In the drawings, wherein like parts are identied by the same' reference numbers, there is disclosed an elongated shallow visible card index tray 1 formed of sheet metal,

having a bottom or floor plate 2, and side walls 3 which extend upward from the oor plate. The side walls bend inward at the top and then depend downward to a disrear wall, not shown, of the tray forming a back stop for conventional record bearing card holders adapted to be contained in the tray. A card holder includes the usual transverse stripS to the upper surface of which is stitched in suitable manner, such as by staples 6, the rear edge of the body or ap 7 of the card holder, which flap is adaptedto hold a record bearing card, not shown. The marginal transverse portion S of the rear edge of the flap is bendable in the manner of a hinge allowing the body portion of the holder to flap either forwardly Yor rearwardly. The extremities of the card holder strip 5 extend in the manner of lugs 9 beyond each side of the flap 7 and are adapted to engage in the channels'4 of the opposite walls of the tray. The strip S ofleach card holder is nestable between'the strip 5 and connecting hinge portion 8 of thecard holder to its rear. The strip of the rearmost holder, not shown, limits in conventional vmanner against the conventional back stop of the tray so as yto limit the extent to which the cardholders may be moved rearwardly and to permit the several card holders of the tray to be compactly nestedl yintoone another. l

Tomaintain this nested arrangementV and to prevent the holders from slipping loose of their nested position in a-forward direction when the holders are being worked upon, a bottom stop is provided. The bottom stop is arranged at the front of the tray vwhere it is hingedly connected in an inclined position. Inthe latter position the rear portion of the bottom stop is adapted to be engaged with the bottommost or end card holder, whereby all of the card holders are held in a nested compact arrangement without possibility of shifting either forwardly, rearwardly or sideways.

The bottom stop is of sheet metalconstruetion and includes a rectangular plate 11. The rear transverse edge 12 of the plate is adapted to abut against the stitching 6 of a card holder at a point betweenthe tlap 7 and the upper surface of the transverse card holder strip 5 (see Fig. 2). The central rear portion at the rear of plate 11, Fig. 4, is slit on the right and left sides out to the edge, as at 13, and is formed downward to provide a tongue 14. The latter is on a plane slightly beneath and substantially parallel to that of the plate and is integral with the plate by a connecting ange 15 at its forward portion. The rearmost portion of the tongue depends slightly angularly and rearwardly a little beyond the plate edge to form a lip or cam 16. The lip 16 is adapted to be moved along the floor of the tray and to cam the end card holder strip 5 upwards on to the tongue. Rein- 3 forcing ribs 17 serve to strengthen the tongue and adjacent central portion of the plate.

The forward transverse edge of plate 11 is folded under against the underside of the plate as at 18 and serves to stitfen the latter. On the underside of the forward portion of plate 11 is a pair of laterally spaced hinge elements, each including an angle member having a ange 19 thereon secured to the underside of plate 11. A second flange 21 of the angle member depends downward and includes a pair of laterally spaced hinge loops 22 adapted for connection by suitable linkage with a forward portion of the tray.

At its forward end, Fig. 4, the tray is provided with a front wall 23 which extends from the floor plate upward and is inclined slightly rearward. Wall 23 bends at its top and extends rearwardly a short span as at 24 and then depends downward to form a shorty ange 25. A vertical wall 26 is mounted in fixed position a little to the rear of the front wall of the tray. The lower end of wall 26 is secured to the iioor of the tray by a ilange 27. The upper end of wall 26 is secured to the rear forward face ofthe depending flange 25, and a flange 28 thereof abuts against the underside of the top 24 of the front wall.

Vertical wall- 26 includes a pair of laterally spaced hinge elements, generally designated 29. Each of the latter includes an angle member, one plate 31 of which is secured to the rear face of fixed wall 26, and the second plate 32 of which extends upwardly and slightly rearwardly and terminates in a single hinge loop 33. A pair of angular toggle links hingedly connect the hinge loops 33 of wall 26 with the hinge loops 22 of the stop plate. Each toggle link includes a short upwardly extended iiange 34 having at its free end a pair of laterally spaced hinge loops 35, alignable one to each side of a hinge loop 33 of the vertical wall. A hinge pin passes through the latter aligned loops. Each toggle link also includes a rearwardly extended ange 36, at the end of which is a hinge loop 37 which is adapted to t between and align with a pair of the hinge loops 22 of the bottom stop plate. A hinge pin passes through the latter aligned loops.

It is to be noted, Fig. 2, that hinge loops 33 of the fixed wall 26 are on a plane a little above and forwardly of those of the stop plate and that the free folded end 18 of the stop plate rests upon the hinge loops of the vertical wall where by this arrangement the stop plate is held in an inclined position extending downwardly and rearwardly in such manner that the cam lip 16 thereof rests upon the oor of the tray.

The stop plate is adapted for movement from this normal position by means of its toggle linkage and hinge arrangement in a direction forwardly and upwardly from the tray. To aid in this movement there is provided in the forward portion of the stop plate a pair of finger grip holes 3S in which a thumb and foreinger may be inserted for retracting the plate.

Now, it will be clear with respect to the arrangement of the bottom stop plate in the tray, Fig. 2, that, when the latter is loaded to its limit with card holders, the rear edge 12 of stop plate 11 will be in a position abutting theV stitching of the foremost end card holder and resting upon the upper surface of the transverse strip of the holder and beneath the connecting hinge edge 8 of the ap. The underside of the end holder strip 5 will be supported by the tongue 14 of the stop plate and the cam lip 16 will rest upon the oor of the tray, whereby the card holders will be held compactly nested into one another without possibility of shifting either forwardly, rearwardly or sideways, while being worked upon.

When it is desired to rearrange the card holder positions or to extract some of them and replace them with others, the stop plate 11 is gripped by a thumb and forelinger in the finger holes 3S and is retracted slightly upwards and then forwardly, where it will assume a position as in Fig. 3 with the position of the toggle links reversed and the forward end of the stop plate extending over the front wall 23 of the tray; and, it will be noted, that the overlapping card holders will be in their conventional flat position with the Hap 7 of the bottom card holder resting upon the stop plate. In the latter released position of the stop plate the card holders are free from the holding action of the plate and may be extracted, rearranged, or replaced by others. When the number of card holders that the tray will holdV have been once more nested and the flap of the end holder again overlies the stop plate, the latter is again gripped by the fingers and is moved rearwardly on its toggle hinges. During the latter action the cam 16 of the tongue will ride along the tray oor until it reaches the strip 5 of the end card holder, it will pass under the latter and cam it upwards on to the tongue, and the rearmost edge 12 of the plate will abut against the stitching of the bottom card holder to again lockthe card holders in compact nested relation to one another. n

lt will readily be seen that by meansv of the placement of the tongue 14 with respect to the edge 12 of stop plate 11, edge 12 is prevented from becoming engaged under lstrip 5 of the holders, thereby leaving the holders unse cured, no matter what angle plate 11 has to oor plate 2 of the tray.

I claim:

1. In a card holding tray having therein a series of card holders comprising strips and pivoted card holding ilaps thereon, the strips adapted to lie in the usual overlapped offset visible index relation, and a bottom stop member adapted to be moved to press against the foremost holder at the junction between the strip `and the 'Flap thereon, the improvement in the bottom stop mem ber which is Vcharacterized by the fact that the rear edge of the stop member has a rearwardly and downwardly spaced tongue which, as the bottom stop member is moved rearwardly, is movedl under the forward edge of the foremost strip to enable the rear edge of the stop member to press against the above mentioned junction.

2. The invention of claim 1 further characterized in that the rearward edge of said tongue is sloped rearwardly and downwardly to act as a cam to lift the forward edge of the foremost strip.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,964,346 Finley lune 26, 1934 2,026,503 Layer Dec. 3l, 1935 FOREIGN PATENTS 144,019 Switzerland 1931 

